Hi everyone.... Just wondering how many people use gumpaste and how many people choose fondant when making small figures/characters. And how long do you let the pieces sit before attaching it all together??

I only use fondant because i think it tast better, with a little tylose powder.
gr. jen.

I use either gumpaste or fondant mixed with Tylose powder. I have learned that fondant on its own when mixed with color can become too soft (I made an Elmo once that completely sunk over when I left it to dry because it was too soft.

I put the pieces of the figurines together immediately and allow 48 hrs to dry.

HTH!

I use MMF mixed with tylose powder for all of my figures. My experience with gumpaste for figures was that it dried out too fast and got all cracky.

I make the body of the figure first and stake it with a piece of spaghetti. While the body is setting up a bit, I make the other pieces for the body (arms, legs, clothes, etc.), and attach them right away. Then I make the head. While the head is setting up a little bit, I make all of the pieces for the head (eyes, ears, mouth, etc.) and then apply them to the head right away. Then I dry fit the head to the body. I do not attach the head to the body until the next day because I have found that it tends to squish the body. The next day I attach the head to the body.

I use fondant with tylose for figures....
I have used just fondant in the past but it just takes too long to dry and set so you are limited to what you can do and how fast you can do it...
I also uise patillage for some details that I know would be harder to do in fondant with tylose... here is an example.. (sorry wasn't able to upload it...) will try another way and see if I can post the pic.
I did Mannie the Mammoth on fondant with tylose but the tusks are made with pastillage... dries super quick... I also used pastillage to make an Eiffel Tower....
Gumpaste I use more for flowers than for anything else... because the petals are so thin... it doesn't crack when you are thinning it...

Thank you! Wow!!!! Those are amazing pictures!!! So talented! I have just made an Elmo, big bird & cookie monster with tylose mixed in but they just were so soft! But I think it may have been because I added the head straight away after I finished making everything. How much Tylose does everyone use? I just can't seem to get them to be dry enough to be strong & stop sagging. The body of Cookie Monster ended up all wrinkly from sagging I put a toothpick through the middle, but maybe I should have have made t somehting longer like spaghetti?

Hello everyone!
I'm from Croatia and here we can't buy tylose powder so just wanted to ask you what is it in that powder and is there any homemade recipe for it?
Thank you in advance

Rhoda1111 to get a feel for the right amount of tylose powder maybe you could try this test. Take a handful of fondant (I use MMF), sprinkle 1/16 of a teaspoon of tylose powder on the fondant, knead it in really good does it feel a little more rubbery than mooshy? If it still feels like regular old fondant, add a little more tylose powder. When you think it feels a little firmer, roll it into an oval ball (like what would be the body of a figure) and stake it with spaghetti or a toothpick. Let it dry overnight. Okay, now, on the next day, when you pick it up, is it firm? Not totally hard, just nice and firm.

I just checked the ingredients in my tylose powder, it contains CMC and dextrin. I ordered it online from ConfectioneryArts . com.

Ok Thanks! I will definitely do this and really appreciate your responses!! I am about to make a man figure to make a 'Golf' themed cake for my dad's 60th. I need the little flag to be really d\\stifff - do I just add extra tylose or should I use gumpaste?
I see that somepeople use gumpaste, some use 1/2 1/2, and some use fondant with tylose - is it just personal preference?

I like to use gumpaste for things I need to be really sturdy or stiff. Tylose in mmf is ok, but it doesnt get really sturdy, it just seems like it firms it up....and in my experience Ive had to add a lot of tylose to get it to the consistency I need.